Greater Sudbury borrowing $205M for large projects

If you're a municipality, now is a good time to borrow.

With low interest rates available through Infrastructure Ontario, the City of Greater Sudbury will be seeking $205 million to help fund itslarge projects.

"[The] 30-year borrowing rate is, currently, through Infrastructure Ontario 2.6 per cent which is extremely low," saidEd Stankiewicz, the city's executive director of finance, assets and fleets.

Borrowing the money now means the city will secure a low rate for 30 years, Stankiewicz said.

However, not all the large projects are at the same stage. The arena/events centre, which is part of the Kingsway Entertainment District, is still on hold while going through the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal process. A hearing date for the project has been set for May 2020.

Stankiewicz saidalthough some projects may not be ready for construction, borrowing now with the low interest rate will allow them to keep the money and have it ready when the projects are ready.

The $205 million is needed for seven large projects that the city has already approved:

• Arena/Events Centre - $90million
• The Junction - $68million
• Municipal Road 35 - $30.8 million
• Bridge andCulverts - $6.9 million
• Place des Arts - $5million
• Playground Revitalization - $2.3 million
• McNaughton Terrace Treatment Facility - $2.2 million

However, the money will not be specifically tied to any project. Stankiewicz says if any of these projects gets cancelled, council could choose to use the money for a new project.

"There are a number of projects that council can consider.We do have potentially Pioneer Manor bed redevelopment which may be approved by council.We also have the Valley East Twin Pad and other projects that council is going to be considering during 2020 and 2021 which this debt financing can be used for as well," Stankiewicz said.

"At this point we're identifying the $205 million for the projects that have been approved to date, however it could be used for other projects as well."